VARIOUS ARTISTS / “Autumn Leaves Mixtape”
I know, I know—it’s still summer but you see what had happened was… I was looking for something and ran across an interesting version of “Autumn Leaves” and then I got to wondering if there were enough versions that I liked that I could put a Mixtape together that was a repeat of what we did back on April 22, 2007 at which time we did twelve versions. You know I love a musical challenge like this. And now the results are in. Except for the Cannonball classic version, we have nineteen versions. We do have a couple of repeat artists but this time around we’re dropping different (and I think better versions) by Dee Bridgewater and Rachelle Ferrell. “Autumn Leaves” is without a doubt the most well-known French song that is most often mistaken as a classic of the American songbook. The original music was written for a ballet by Joseph Kosma, a Hungarian exile then living in France. The original lyrics were by famous poet Jacques Prevert. The English lyrics were written by Johnny Mercer. The song has been recorded so many times, it’s almost impossible to count them. It is a favorite of both pop and jazz artists, and because it’s theme is seasonal, it will probably be around as long as humans falling in and out of love are around, and especially those humans who have summer flings. In any case, here is a very wide range of interpretations. A couple of versions are sung in French. As always, your comments are welcomed as to which version you think is better. —Kalamu ya Salaam "Autumn Leaves" Mixtape Playlist 01 Live in Antibes - Dee Dee Bridgewater 02 The Best Of Johnny Griffin 03 Bop For Miles - Mark Murphy 04 Swingin' Love - Kenny Drew 05 Mestizuo - Concha Buika 06 Blues Everywhere - Shirley Scott 07 At Basin Street East - Gloria Lynne 08 Devastatingly Wonderful - Marie Booker 09 To The Change In You - Jasmin Bailey 10 Follow Me - Jean-Michel Pilc 11 Embraceable You - Leny Andrade 12 The Essence Part 1- Ahmad Jamal 13 Feeling Orange But Sometimes Blue - Ledisi 14 Somethin' Else (Remastered) - Cannonball Adderley 15 Autumn Leaves: The Songs Of Johnny Mercer - Jacintha 16 Live at the Great American Music Hall - Trudy Pitts Trio 17 Promo EP - Kersha Bailey 18 Dream Weaver - Charles Lloyd Quartet 19 Estival Jazz Lugano (bootleg) - Rachelle Ferrell
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